Hello world! Welcome back to another blog. In honour of World Mental Health Day, I would like to talk about a trait which for some of us on the autistic spectrum, is a daily challenge… Masking.
I briefly mentioned about Masking in my last World Mental Health Day blog, but I thought it would be appropriate to mention this in full detail as well.
Masking is a term used to basically hide our autism. The National Autistic society’s definition of masking is as follows:
Masking is a strategy used by some autistic people, consciously or unconsciously, to appear non-autistic. While this strategy can help them get by at school, work and in social situations, it can have a devastating impact on mental health, sense of self and access to an autism diagnosis.
Signs Of Masking:
Masking can come in many forms. Some of these include:
Mimicking people
Suppressing stims
Going along with something even if it makes you feel uncomfortable
Prepping conversations (also known as “scripting”)
Fear of saying the wrong thing due to not being able to read people
Why Do We Mask?
This question is different for everyone and it could be a variety of reasons. For some it may be to avoid bullying, for some they were told by others (be it friends, family or random strangers) that what they have isn’t “normal”, and for some, even though others like them for who they are, they can’t accept themselves, therefore fearing society won’t accept them.
For me personally, and I’m only realising this now as I’m writing this, I had to mask because I just followed society’s rules. And maybe that’s why at school and throughout college I hid some of my special interests (hand puppets, impressions), because I would be judged as being “not normal”. Maybe it’s also why I couldn’t be my true authentic self, as I had to go along with what everyone else said, not fully investing into my own potential. But then again what is normal nowadays? As if Alice from Alice in Wonderland can accept the mad hatter for being entirely bonkers then everyone should accept someone’s autism and not tell them to “Act Normal”.
How To Overcome Masking:
This is different for everyone, but from my experience, tips to unmask include:
having time to unmask-this could be a quiet space to stim, or link back to your special interests (which for me one example is watching a funny daz black video)
Open up to a trusted confidante-if you feel comfortable enough to, if you have a family member or a close friend who you know won’t judge you then that’s brilliant! Then you can gradually open yourself up more to that person or more people over time
Express it in your own way-talking isn’t always easy for us, but you can express masking in your own way. For me I express it through writing and creativity, so here is a monologue I wrote myself where in this scene, my character explains their definition of what masking is after an altercation with their boss: https://youtu.be/K5H8A9uneTA?si=WTFt_c10sxeEdB_J
And that was my blog on masking. As I said it’s different for everyone, but I hope reading this will help those who may need some information on what it is and how to work with it not against it. Please also see the link below where The National Autistic Society gives off their view of masking as well for further information, also seeing testimonials from people who have experienced masking themselves.
See you soon for another blog. Until next time…
This is The Autistic Actress signing off :)
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